Phosban media replacement
 

Just wondering how often you guys replace your phosban media? I am using RowaPhos and have had it on for about 2 months...time for a change?

I change mine once a month. I think after 2 months, you're due for a change :)

the result of your phosphate test kit will dictate when a change is required. test it monthly or every 2-3 weeks.

I think you are right Drew, I better get it changed :biggrin:

I have been using the Nutrafin test kit, but it does not seem very accurate. I am guess salifert is the best one to use?

I agree. Check your PO4 from your tank and effluent from where your RowaPhos is located. The PO4 returning from your fluidizer or canister should ideally be 0, or at least less than your tank. It is time to replace your RowaPhos when the effluent levels start to rise. You may need to change it frequently to start with if your PO4 levels were high. Once your PO4 is <0.015, you may have to change the RowaPhos every 4-8 weeks.
I would recommend getting a good PO4 test kit. I find even the Merck kit unreliable and recently spent the money and picked up a Hana low range PO4 meter.

I prefer Elos for phosphate testing. I could never figure out how to get one level spoonful of the fluffy granular compound the Salifert kit has. The inevitable rounded spoonful always left me doubting the results.

Do you guys really get differing results from colour based test kits? I've never gotten a difference from tank water to reactor output. And I use a photometer now because I started to doubt my results from colour based test kits. And .. well .. in the end even those things I kind of have trouble deciding what my "real" value is because the error is 0.04 (so a true value of 0.04 could read as 0.00 or vice-versa, a true value of 0.04 could read as 0.00).

What kind of numbers do you guys get when testing for phosphate?

Considering the cost of the testing and measuring equipment, it might be better just to change the media once a month.
That’s what I do, keep it simple unless you want to get technical,
Do I really care what the value of the PO4 is, or do I care how my tank and corals feel like ?
:wink:

Maybe. The cost of GFO maybe has come down a bit. When it first came out it was like $100 for a little jar of it. At that price, you want to make sure it's being used effectively. I guess at the prices we pay now we can be a little more judicious, but nevertheless it's just ingrained into me that if I pay for media that I want to see the results. But having said that, I can't really tell a difference when my tank reads 0.01 or 0.1. So I'm curious what other people see when they test.

To be honest i'd like to know that too.:smile: